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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766393">Ill Met By Moonlight</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikkimouse/pseuds/mikkimouse'>mikkimouse</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Gargoyles (Cartoon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Captivity, Gen, Minor David Xanatos/Fox Xanatos, Minor Elisa Maza/Goliath, Minor Owen Burnett/David Xanatos, Panic Attacks, Trope Bingo Round 14, see end notes for explanations</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 07:15:27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,154</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766393</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikkimouse/pseuds/mikkimouse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>For Elisa, waking up tied up to one of her least favorite people on the planet is just the cherry on top of an already crappy night.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Elisa Maza &amp; Puck | Owen Burnett</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Trope Bingo: Round Fourteen</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Ill Met By Moonlight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was mostly an excuse to write Elisa and Owen having to deal with each other, because while no doubt they're on slightly better terms by the end of the series, they're not exactly what you'd call "friendly."</p>
<p>This fills the Handcuffed/Bound Together square on my <a href="https://mad-madam-m.dreamwidth.org/17415.html">Trope Bingo board</a> and now I've only got <em>one fic left</em>.</p>
<p>Title comes from <em>A Midsummer Night's Dream</em>, and thank you to <a href="https://paintedrecs.tumblr.com/">painted</a> for throwing it at me.</p>
<p>For descriptions on the panic attack and the relationships, see the end notes.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"This is, by far, the worst night of my life," Elisa muttered. </p>
<p>"I can think of a few that have it beat for me," Burnett said dryly behind her. </p>
<p>Elisa rolled her eyes. All right, granted, Burnett had several <em>hundred</em> years of shitty nights to draw from, but for Elisa, being knocked out and waking up tied up to one of her least favorite people on the planet was going to be <em>really</em> hard to beat.</p>
<p>And whoever had tied them up had done a good job of it, too. They were each in a chair, back to back, with a rope nearly twice the width of Elisa's thumb bound around them both. But that wasn't it, oh no. Their wrists had been tied together, too, and since Elisa's ankles were also bound to the legs of her chair, she guessed that Burnett's were as well. </p>
<p>She twisted her hands, trying to loosen the ropes that bound her wrists to Burnett's, but they held fast. "Can't you magic us out of this?" </p>
<p>"Unless you are somehow Alexander Xanatos in disguise, no, I cannot," Burnett said. </p>
<p>Right, Oberon's curse. Elisa considered, trying to think of a way around it. "Alex could be in danger right now." </p>
<p>Burnett snorted. "He's at home. It's extremely doubtful." </p>
<p>Okay, if that wasn't going to work, Elisa would think of something else. "Well, what about—" </p>
<p>"Detective Maza, finding magical loopholes is quite literally <em>my specialty</em>," Burnett snapped. "If one existed, I assure you, I would have already exploited it."</p>
<p>The ropes tightened on her hands, and from the sound of it, Burnett was trying to loosen the ropes, same as she had, and it was working about as well. </p>
<p>Elisa sighed. "Don't suppose you've got any sharp objects on you?" </p>
<p>"Sadly, no. My assailants appear to have taken everything remotely useful," Burnett said. "Including my phone." </p>
<p>Well, crap, there went that hope. "Yeah, they frisked me, too." </p>
<p>Elisa looked around the windowless room where they were stuck. Small storage-type room, one door, one set of shelves mostly in shadow, no light but a single flickering bulb overhead. Not a whole lot to work with. "Do you have any idea where we are?" </p>
<p>"No," Burnett said. </p>
<p>"You're not lying to me, are you?" Elisa pushed. </p>
<p>He exhaled sharply. "Lying to you will do nothing to help me right now, detective, so <em>no</em>, I am not."</p>
<p>Elisa clenched her jaw. A very small part of her had been hoping Xanatos was behind this, even though as soon as she'd woken up tied to Burnett, she'd known that wasn't the case. Xanatos had, overall, kept to his promise about the feud being over, although Elisa suspected he was still involved in some shadier things that were well out of the gargoyles' purview. However, there was not a way in hell he would do anything to put Burnett in any kind of danger, so that immediately ruled him out. </p>
<p>And then that brought up another question. </p>
<p>"Who the hell is stupid enough to kidnap <em>you?</em>" Elisa asked. "I know Xanatos has about two million enemies, but none of them are stupid enough to do <em>this</em>." </p>
<p>"An astute observation," Burnett said. "Given our current circumstances and that neither of us are dead, it's most likely Thailog." </p>
<p>Elisa blinked. "What makes you say that?" </p>
<p>"I was knocked out while I was investigating a break-in at one of Mr. Xanatos's facilities, and of our enemies, Thailog would be the one most interested in our technology." </p>
<p>Yeah, Thailog was probably the best guess, although they had a long enough list of mutual enemies that Elisa had to take a few more seconds to mentally run through it. "You don't think it would be Demona?" </p>
<p>"If it had been Demona, detective, I'm reasonably sure <em>you</em> would be dead," Burnett said frankly. "What were you doing when you were abducted?" </p>
<p>"Same thing as you," Elisa said. "Investigating a break-in. I didn't see who got me, though." </p>
<p>"Where was the break-in?" Burnett asked. </p>
<p>Her instinct was to keep it quiet, but hell, they were stuck in this together right now. "A warehouse on the west side of town owned by the Scarab Corporation. I know that's one of yours. How about you?" </p>
<p>"The Scarab corporate building." Burnett's voice was tight. "I was unaware there was a break-in at one of our warehouses. That does not bode well for us." </p>
<p>Elisa glanced around the room again. "None of this bodes well for us." </p>
<p>"The break-in at the corporate building was digital," Burnett said. "Do you recall what was stolen at the warehouse?" </p>
<p>"Some kind of robot parts." Elisa closed her eyes and tried to remember what, exactly, the report had said. "One of them was some kind of metal alloy, I think? Lex was really excited about it. I had the list in my pocket." </p>
<p>Burnett cursed under his breath. "We need to get out of here." </p>
<p>Elisa scoffed. "Yeah, no kidding." </p>
<p>"Because we're in greater danger than the <em>obvious</em>, detective." Burnett sounded like he'd lost his patience. "The digital files that were stolen were part of a new artificial intelligence we've been developing. And that warehouse stored a new metal alloy that Mr. Xanatos wanted to use for an upgrade to the Steel Clan. One that is nigh indestructible." </p>
<p>Elisa closed her eyes and groaned. "So we're looking at an indestructible robot." </p>
<p>"An indestructible robot originally programmed by Xanatos Enterprises and most likely now in Thailog's hands," Burnett confirmed. </p>
<p>"This night just keeps getting better and better." Elisa looked down at the ropes. "So back to the first question. Got any brilliant ideas for getting us out of this that don't involve magic?" </p>
<p>Burnett twisted his left hand. "My hand might be rough enough to fray the ropes, but it will take some time." </p>
<p>Time they might not have. Elisa looked again to the shelf in the corner. "There's a shelf over here with stuff on it, but there's not enough light to see what's on it." </p>
<p>"Well, there's nothing on this side of the room," Burnett said. "Shall we try to move over and see if someone has very helpfully left us a knife?" </p>
<p>She doubted it, but there could very well be <em>something</em> on the shelf they could use to get free. "Okay." Elisa planted her feet as best she could with her ankles tied to the chair. "On three, start moving to your left. One, two, <em>three.</em>" </p>
<p>She pushed to the right as hard as she could, and the wooden legs of the chair screeched against the floor, loud enough that she was certain someone was going to come looking for the source of the sound. But nobody came, and they'd moved a little closer to the shelf. Okay. Progress. </p>
<p>"Two inches down, seven feet to go," Burnett said, voice dripping with sarcasm.</p>
<p>Elisa rolled her eyes. "Shut up and scoot."</p>
<p>They did, making their way across the room two inches at a time, slowly but surely. Elisa thanked God she was wearing boots, otherwise she was pretty sure the ropes around her ankles would've rubbed her skin raw by now, even with jeans over them. </p>
<p>Scooting two chairs across a room with only the power of her feet in a room with no air movement was much sweatier work than Elisa had anticipated, and she could feel her shirt getting soaked through with the effort. "Why the hell couldn't they have tied us into something with wheels?" she muttered. </p>
<p>Burnett grunted. "I safely assume that's a rhetorical question, detective."</p>
<p>"Wow, how <em>very</em> astute—"</p>
<p>The chair leg caught on something with their next push and Elisa had only a second to brace herself before they went toppling to the side. She landed with her full weight on her right shoulder and arm, and cursed at the pain. Something cracked, and she really hoped it wasn't a bone. </p>
<p>"Are you all right, detective?" Burnett asked, sounding a little winded. </p>
<p>Elisa took inventory of herself as best she could, lying on her side while tied to a chair. "Yeah, I think so. You?" </p>
<p>He exhaled sharply. "Nothing broken, so far as I can tell." </p>
<p>"That's good." Elisa closed her eyes and tried to think. They couldn't get to the shelf like they were and they probably couldn't get back up unless they could somehow get out of the chairs. </p>
<p>Which...<em>wait</em>. </p>
<p>She pushed out with her left foot, currently suspended in the air. The ropes slipped off the bottom of the chair leg. "Hey, Burnett—" </p>
<p>A louder <em>crack</em> resounded behind her, and Elisa jumped at the noise. "What the hell was that?" </p>
<p>"The chair leg," Burnett said very reasonably, as if he was relaying the weather. "I broke it."</p>
<p>"You can just slip your leg off it," Elisa said.</p>
<p>"It's going to be much easier to get out if we destroy them. And I'm not feeling particularly <em>careful</em> at the moment." </p>
<p>All right, he had a point with that. </p>
<p>Elisa bent her leg, setting her left foot against the leg of the chair, and pushed against it as hard as she could. Sure enough, the leg snapped off a moment later. Her right leg was harder, trapped under her as it was, but with enough pulling and pushing, that leg came free, too, and took the chair leg with it. From the sounds behind her, Burnett had succeeded in the same thing. </p>
<p>Elisa collapsed on the floor and stretched her legs out, relishing the freedom of movement and the break. </p>
<p>Burnett jerked, scooting both of them back across the floor, and there was another <em>crack</em> from the chairs. </p>
<p>Elisa lifted her head and tried to look, but it wasn't like she could see what was going on. "What are you doing?" </p>
<p>"Breaking," <em>crack</em>, "the other," <em>crack</em>, "chair legs." </p>
<p>Elisa groaned inwardly before she started doing the same thing. The first leg came off easily—it must've already been loose—but the second one took more work. </p>
<p>As soon as the last of the chair legs was off, Elisa took another break. "You'd think they'd have tied us up in something less easy to destroy." </p>
<p>"I'm going to be very grateful that they did <em>not</em>," Burnett said. "If we can get upright, we can probably stand. I believe the backs will come out of the chairs easily." </p>
<p>Elisa nodded, and then remembered he couldn't see her. "Sounds good. Just...give me a second." </p>
<p>"<em>Are</em> you all right, detective?" </p>
<p>"I'm fine," Elisa said. "I just need to catch my breath." </p>
<p>Burnett made an affirmative noise. "Let me know when you're ready." </p>
<p>Elisa closed her eyes and counted to twenty, measuring her breaths. "All right. I'm ready." </p>
<p>"On the count of three?" </p>
<p>"I'll count us," Elisa said. "One, two, <em>three</em>." </p>
<p>She planted her feet on the ground, awkward as the angle was, and pushed off the floor with her shoulder, pressing against Burnett's back for better leverage. It took a couple of tries with the chair seats in the way, but on the third attempt, they landed upright with a <em>thud</em> that jarred Elisa's entire body. </p>
<p>She stared out at her legs, sprawled in front of her. "Well, at least <em>that</em> worked." </p>
<p>"Yes." Burnett's voice sounded strained. "Do you think we might be able to get out of these ropes around us, now?" </p>
<p>Elisa looked from side to side. Moving around as much as they had had shoved the ropes around their bodies higher, and they were almost high enough that she could bend her elbows. "If we can stand up, we can probably get the backs of the chairs out from between us. That should give us enough leeway to get the ropes off. Although trying to stand up without anything to push against...do you think we can get to the wall?" </p>
<p>"Should be slightly easier than moving the chairs," Burnett said. </p>
<p>Elisa frowned. He still sounded breathless. "You okay?" </p>
<p>"I am as well as can be expected, detective, and I'll be much better once we're out of these ropes. Shall we move on three?" </p>
<p>Elisa counted them off again. Sliding across the floor with almost a full range of motion from her legs was a <em>lot</em> faster than scooting the chairs had been, and it didn't take long for them to get to the wall. "Do you want to brace or push?" </p>
<p>"Brace." </p>
<p>They maneuvered around until Burnett was facing the wall. "Ready?" Elisa asked. </p>
<p>"Ready." </p>
<p>Elisa planted her feet against the floor and pushed against him as hard as she could, wincing at the wood of the chair digging into her back. She was going to have <em>so many</em> bruises from this little adventure. </p>
<p>Their first attempt at standing failed, but the second attempt broke the seats off the chairs and they were able to get to their feet. Elisa's legs nearly gave out after the effort of standing upright, but she managed to find her balance before she pulled them over. </p>
<p>She'd only just finished mentally congratulating herself when Burnett collapsed against the wall, yanking her with him. "<em>Hey! </em>Careful!" </p>
<p>Burnett didn't respond. He was breathing rapidly, and Elisa was starting to doubt it had much to do with the exertion of breaking the chairs. Shit.</p>
<p>"Burnett." He still didn't answer. "<em>Burnett</em>. Are you okay?" </p>
<p>Still no response. </p>
<p>Okay. They could deal with this. Somehow. She wiggled her left hand around until she could grab his fingers. "Can you squeeze my hand?" </p>
<p>He did. It was a pathetic squeeze, but it counted. </p>
<p>"Okay." Elisa swallowed hard. Her throat was dry. "This is going to suck, but we need to exhale as much as we can and pull apart, and see if that gives us enough room to get the backs of the chairs out from between us. Squeeze once if you understand." </p>
<p>Another squeeze. </p>
<p>"Good. Squeeze my hand when you're ready, and I'll count to three." </p>
<p>"Count," Burnett said, his voice ragged. </p>
<p>Elisa did, putting the <em>very</em> not-good sound of his breathing out of her mind, and then she exhaled and leaned forward against the ropes, angling her hands up and behind her to see if she could grab the back of her chair and pull it out from between them. Of course it was no use; it was too high up, but she thought she could feel it slipping. She bounced, and it slipped a little more. </p>
<p>Behind her, she felt Burnett do the same, and then the backs of the chairs slid down enough that she could grip the bottom with her thumb and forefinger and pull. </p>
<p>The chair backs clattered to the floor, and Elisa lifted their arms straight out to the side, pushing the ropes up further. Burnett got with the program a second later, and together they got the ropes up over their shoulders and then off to the floor. </p>
<p>Burnett went down again as soon as they were free, but Elisa anticipated it this time and dropped to the ground as well. She leaned against the wall, still bound at the wrists but otherwise free, and the wrists would be easier to take care of now that they were out of the other ropes. </p>
<p>She rested her head on the wall just long enough to catch her breath, and then angled her right leg high enough that she could try to get into her boot. "How're you doing back there?" </p>
<p>"Fantastic," came the answer, dry as the desert. </p>
<p>Sarcasm again. Burnett must've been feeling better. Elisa tugged her jeans up and wiggled her fingers down into her boot. She could've cried in relief when she felt the knife handle still there. "Guess what, I've got good news." </p>
<p>"You found a phone?" </p>
<p>"No, whoever frisked me didn't check my boot." She carefully moved her foot away from her hand. "So they didn't get my knife." </p>
<p>"Good news indeed, detective." Burnett's voice sounded steadier and considerably less ragged than it had just a few moments ago.</p>
<p>Elisa passed the knife from her right hand to her left. "So just to clarify, your left hand is <em>entirely</em> stone, right? No feeling in it at all?" </p>
<p>"Entirely. A knife won't hurt it."</p>
<p>It was difficult enough to maneuver the knife with her non-dominant hand; doing so behind her back while not trying to cut herself was <em>super</em> fun. It took her a few tries to get a rhythm going, but once she did, she managed to cut through the rope quickly. As soon as she felt the rope around her right wrist give way, she yanked herself free and swapped hands so she could cut the other rope. </p>
<p>The last rope fell away after a few quick swipes, and Elisa sank back against the wall again. Now that they were free, her wrists were <em>throbbing</em>, and she really didn't want to look and see how bad the damage was. She slipped the knife back into her boot and checked herself over anyway. Her wrists were raw and red, bleeding in a couple of spots, but nothing too bad. Her ankles were fine, protected as they had been by her boots, and nothing else felt broken. Bruised, almost certainly, but not broken. </p>
<p>She looked over to Burnett, who was also propped up against the wall, legs out in front of him and eyes closed, his glasses askew and a vague sheen of sweat on his face. It was hard to tell in the crappy light from the single bulb, but she thought he looked too pale. </p>
<p>With a groan, she pushed herself off the wall to crawl over and check on him. "Here, let me—" </p>
<p>His eyes snapped open, and he straightened slightly, pulling away from her. "I'm fine, detective." </p>
<p>Elisa sat back on her heels. "I was just making sure you're okay." </p>
<p>"You've made sure." He wiped his right hand on his slacks and stood. "Now I believe we should turn our attention to getting out of here." </p>
<p>Elisa stood up as well, stretching her arms and legs as she did. "Don't have to tell me twice." </p>
<p>She followed him to the door, which was, predictably, locked. Elisa glanced back to the shelf. "Well, I can look for something to—" </p>
<p>"Unnecessary." Burnett drew his left fist back and punched straight through the latch, and then casually pushed the door open. "Shall we?" </p>
<p>Elisa peered around the open door to make sure they weren't about to be ambushed. But no, there was just a long, dimly lit hallway stretching to either side of them, with several other closed doors lining the walls. None of them had lights underneath, so this floor was either abandoned entirely or just nobody was on it this late.</p>
<p>She stepped into the hallway and motioned to Burnett to follow her. "So that fist comes in handy, huh?" </p>
<p>He tugged the cuff of his suit jacket down around it. "More often than you'd think." </p>
<p>"How come you never changed it back?" she asked. </p>
<p>"Personal reasons," Burnett said smoothly, which was maybe the politest <em>fuck off</em> Elisa had ever heard. </p>
<p>"Come on, let's find a bathroom," Elisa said. "Or at least a water fountain. I need something to drink." </p>
<p>They also needed a break to regroup, and she was reasonably sure Burnett would feel better if he splashed some water on his face. </p>
<p>She took a left down the hall and found a restroom about three doors down, not far from a bank of elevators. A sign next to the door opposite them had the Nightstone Unlimited logo on it. </p>
<p>Elisa nodded at the sign. "Looks like you were right about Thailog." </p>
<p>"You'll forgive me if I'm not jumping for joy to learn that, detective," Burnett said. </p>
<p>The bathroom was just as empty as the rest of the floor, and Elisa went straight to the sink to wash her hands and wrists, cleaning the cuts she'd gotten from the rope. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Burnett get a handkerchief wet with soap and water, wrap it around his stone hand, and then use that to clean his own wrist. </p>
<p>"What are the chances they have the elevators locked down?" Elisa asked. </p>
<p>"Excellent." Burnett rinsed his hand off and squeezed out the handkerchief. "We'll have better luck with the stairs. But we cannot leave until we find the files and the alloy Thailog stole."</p>
<p>Elisa cupped her hands to take a drink of water. Crappy water, but she was thirsty. "You want us to search the entire skyscraper by ourselves? We'll get caught again." </p>
<p>"If we find a computer, I can find what he's done with the files, at least." Burnett gripped the edge of the sink. "The alloy might be trickier, but—"</p>
<p>"Did you miss the part where we'll <em>get caught?</em>" Elisa grabbed a few paper towels to dry off her hands and face. "It's smarter to get out of here now and come back when we have backup." </p>
<p>"Time is not a luxury we have in any respect," Burnett snapped. "Thailog could already be replicating our work with the artificial intelligence. The faster we get it out of his hands, the lower the chances of him creating something functional." </p>
<p>Elisa cursed under her breath and scrubbed her face. Staying around here where Thailog could get to them was a terrible idea, but leaving Thailog with the means to create an indestructible, super-smart robot was equally terrible. "Fine." She bit out the word. "Let's find you a computer."</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Finding a computer proved to be as easy as opening the door to the first office they came across, just on the other side of the elevator bank. Elisa stood guard at the door, knife in hand, while Burnett took the computer. For a long few minutes, the only sound was the clacking of the keyboard. </p>
<p>"The fourteenth floor," Burnett said, breaking the silence.</p>
<p>Elisa looked back at him. "For the alloy or for the AI?" </p>
<p>Burnett stood, the chair scraping across the floor as he did. "With any luck, both." He picked up the desk phone and started dialing. "The fourteenth floor appears to be a laboratory." </p>
<p>Elisa crossed to the desk. "Wait, who are you calling?" </p>
<p>Burnett gave her a flat look. "Mr. Xanatos, obviously." </p>
<p>"<em>Obviously</em>," Elisa muttered. </p>
<p>Although really, Xanatos was probably their best bet, all things considered. The police wouldn't be able to do much against Thailog, and Xanatos would be able to get in touch with the clan. </p>
<p>Burnett frowned at the phone. </p>
<p>That didn't look good. "What's wrong?" Elisa asked.</p>
<p>"He isn't answering."</p>
<p>The floor shook hard enough that Elisa had to grab onto the desk to keep her balance, and then she heard a very familiar roar. </p>
<p>She bolted for the door. "I think I know why he isn't answering. Come on!"</p>
<p>Burnett was right behind her. </p>
<p>They made straight for the stairs and started down. A glance at the signs by the doors told her they'd started on the twentieth floor, which at least meant they didn't have too far to go to hit the fourteenth. </p>
<p>The door to the fourteenth floor was, unsurprisingly, locked. Elisa stepped aside and let Burnett handle it, since punching through the latch was much faster than trying to pick it. </p>
<p>They entered a foyer, with the laboratory door just to their left. The sounds of fighting were louder down here, close enough that Goliath and Xanatos probably <em>were</em> somewhere on this floor, and Elisa wondered just what the hell was going on. "We should help them." </p>
<p>Burnett strode past her and straight to the lab. "Be my guest, detective. I'm going to get our property back."</p>
<p>Elisa grumbled under her breath and followed him. For some reason, she felt compelled to make sure Burnett didn't do something to get himself captured or killed. </p>
<p>Inside the lab, Burnett made a beeline straight for the nearest computer and started typing on the keyboard, faster with one hand than Elisa was with two. Probably searching for the AI, then. </p>
<p>Elisa looked around the lab. It was absolutely massive and filled almost entirely with equipment she couldn't begin to identify. That also meant she had no idea where to start looking for the alloy. </p>
<p>She made another sweep of the lab, trying to think of where Thailog might have stashed it. He'd need someplace to manufacture it eventually if he intended to turn it into a robot, but if she and Burnett had been tied up and left in an unused office, it was doubtful Thailog had had time to do much more with the alloy aside from hide it. </p>
<p>Elisa spotted a panel on the wall that was at the slightest angle compared to its counterparts. She skimmed her fingers along the edges, pressing at intervals. At the fifth press, the panel popped open, and inside was a box with the Scarab Corporation logo emblazoned on it. </p>
<p>Elisa grinned. "Gotcha." </p>
<p>Hauling it out under her own power was <em>not</em> going to happen, she realized very quickly, but another search of the lab yielded a dolly, and Elisa loaded the box onto it and rolled it over to Burnett. "Did you get your files?" </p>
<p>Burnett pressed the disk drive on the computer and took out a floppy disk. "Indeed." He glanced down at the box. "Is that the alloy?" </p>
<p>Elisa patted the handle of the dolly. "You might want to check, but it's the only box with your logo on it I found." </p>
<p>Burnett tucked the disk into his jacket pocket and knelt to open the box. He examined what was inside, and then nodded once. "This appears to be it. Thank you, detective." </p>
<p>Elisa waved it off. "Just doing my job. Now, how are we going to get this <em>out</em> of here?" </p>
<p>As soon as she finished the sentence, something crashed through the wall, sending bits of steel and stone flying. Before Elisa could react, Burnett grabbed her around the waist and hauled them both behind the desk. </p>
<p>Not for the first time, Elisa wished she still had her gun. Her knife wasn't going to cut it against Thailog. </p>
<p>Burnett peeked around the other side of the desk. "Good news, detective. The cavalry appears to have arrived." </p>
<p>Elisa shot to her feet to see Goliath and Xanatos, the latter in his battle armor, coming through the hole in the wall. </p>
<p>"Goliath!" she shouted, and ran over to fling herself into his arms. </p>
<p>Goliath caught her easily and lifted her into a hug, one massive hand stroking over her hair. "Elisa! You're all right!" </p>
<p>She closed her eyes and buried her face in his neck. "Of course I'm all right." She remembered where they were and jerked her head up. "Wait. Is Thailog—" </p>
<p>Goliath growled. "He escaped us once again."</p>
<p>Elisa let herself relax with that news and pressed her face back into his neck. </p>
<p>Goliath, for his part, didn't seem inclined to let her go, and even wrapped his wings around her. "We were so worried when you disappeared. We thought—"</p>
<p>"I'm okay," Elisa assured him. "I'm okay." </p>
<p>She opened her eyes to check on Burnett; predictably, Xanatos had hauled him into a hug, awkward-looking as it was with that giant armor on. Burnett didn't seem to mind, though. In fact, his eyes were closed and his face was turned, just slightly, toward Xanatos's neck. </p>
<p>Elisa turned her attention back to Goliath. "You know, you guys have great timing." She gestured back to the Scarab Corporation box on the dolly. "We've got a big box full of a heavy metal alloy that needs to leave here with us." </p>
<p>"The alloy?" Xanatos sounded surprised. "You found it?" </p>
<p>Burnett produced the disk from his pocket. "We found the artificial intelligence as well, and it's been erased from Thailog's drives." </p>
<p>"Owen, I'm going to kiss you now," Xanatos said. </p>
<p>Burnett's expression didn't change. "I'd prefer you didn't, sir." </p>
<p>Elisa smothered a laugh. </p>
<p>Goliath put Elisa down and lifted the box, frowning at it. "I am not sure I can carry both this and you and still glide safely." </p>
<p>"Not to worry." Xanatos put his helmet back on. "I'll call us a ride."</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>The ride turned out to be Fox, who met them on the roof with a helicopter. She shoved open the door and grinned at the four of them. "Owen. Detective Maza. Glad to see you're both okay." </p>
<p>"Fox," Elisa said by way of greeting. </p>
<p>Burnett frowned. "Where is Alexander?" </p>
<p>Fox jerked her head back toward the Eyrie Building. "Asleep. Lexington's watching him." </p>
<p>Goliath and Xanatos loaded the alloy into the back of the helicopter. "Can we give you a lift back to the precinct, detective?" Xanatos asked.</p>
<p>Elisa shook her head. "I've been off shift for at least two hours. I'd rather head home."</p>
<p>Goliath walked over to her. "Then I shall take you there."</p>
<p>Burnett turned to Elisa and held out his right hand. "Thank you for your assistance in recovering our stolen property, Detective Maza." </p>
<p>Elisa scoffed and wondered, not for the first time, just <em>how</em> Owen Burnett was also one of the most famous tricksters in the world. She took his outstretched hand and shook it. "No problem, Mr. Burnett. Don't take this the wrong way, but I really don't want to do it again anytime soon." </p>
<p>It might have been her imagination, but she could've sworn he smiled, just a little. "Likewise."  </p>
<p>Fox knocked on the side of the helicopter. "Okay, everybody going to the Eyrie Building, get on board. It's after two in the morning and I've got a baby who's going to want food in about twenty minutes."</p>
<p>Elisa stepped back with Goliath, and watched as Xanatos helped Burnett into the helicopter before climbing in behind him. A moment later, the rotors started up again, and the helicopter took off.  </p>
<p>Elisa leaned back on Goliath. "Thanks for coming to our rescue, big guy." </p>
<p>He sighed and carded his claws through her hair. "I am just relieved to find you safe and unharmed. What Xanatos told me you had been taken, I feared the worst. Especially with Thailog involved." </p>
<p>Elisa looped her arms around his neck. "Hey, Thailog's going to have to work harder than that to take me out." </p>
<p>Goliath smiled and lifted her easily. "Something for which I am very grateful." </p>
<p>Elisa kissed his cheek. "Take me home?" </p>
<p>"Gladly," Goliath said, and jumped off the edge of the building. </p>
<p>As always, her stomach swooped in those first few seconds before his wings caught the currents and they soared into the air. Elisa reflexively tightened her grip on his neck, but she wasn't afraid she would fall. She hadn't been afraid of falling with Goliath since the first time they'd met. </p>
<p>Elisa rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, warm and comfortable and <em>safe</em> with Goliath's arms around her, and listened to the sound of the wind rushing past as they glided above the city. </p>
<p>At last, her night was finally looking up.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Panic attack: Owen is fighting one off while they're tied together. It's not described in-depth, as the fic is entirely from Elisa's viewpoint. </p>
<p>Relationships: Like the previous fics I've written (and based on <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/series/1640824">painted's fics</a>), Xanatos and Fox have an open relationship, so she's aware he's also dating Owen.</p>
<p>Come see me on:<br/><a href="https://twitter.com/mad_madam_m">Twitter</a><br/><a href="https://mad-madam-m.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a><br/><a href="https://mad-madam-m.dreamwidth.org/">Dreamwidth</a><br/><a href="https://www.pillowfort.social/mad-madam-m">Pillowfort</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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